Zinc Saucier XXXII: Dancing with the Stars

[Sian]

Welcome one and all to the thirty-second Zinc Saucier challenge, where Playgrounders come to test their skill in the art of beautiful and bizarre (and bizarrely beautiful) builds, summoning a savory dish of superb swordplay and sublime sorcery.

The challenge? To come up with a build that has the same abilities and feel as the Secret Ingredient WITHOUT actually using it!

For the thirty-second challenge, get ready to dance your night away; straight from Dragon Compendium, it's the Battle Dancer

Our challengers will have about 2 weeks to build a complete build up to Effective Character Level 20 using a 32 point buy and all official WOTC D&D 3.5 materials (excluding Dragon Magazine, but including any WOTC online enhancements) with the abilities and feel of a Battle Dancer without actually using any levels in it.

Entries must be submitted by Wednesday, 21:00pm UTC, 8 July, 2015. As usual, please submit your entries via private message to the chairman, so as not to influence the other sauciers.

Judges will then have until Wednesday, 21:00pm UTC, 22 July, 2015, to post scores for all dishes.

Contestants will be judged and awarded a score out of 5 in each of 4 categories;

* Innovation (Uniqueness in character concept, race, class, etc)
* Power (How powerful and versatile it is compared to the base class)
* Elegance (What can only be described as how well the build "flows", i.e not using lots of 1-2lv dips, sacrificing flavour for power or using flaws)
* Ingredient (How well the build captures the abilities and feel of the base class)

Presentation would be best in the style of how the iron chef does their presentations, however any style is allowed so long as it is clear on how the build was made.

Recommended style:

Spoiler

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NAME OF ENTRY

Level	Class	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Skills	Feats	Class Features
1st	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
2nd	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
3rd	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
4th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
5th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
6th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
7th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
8th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
9th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
10th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
11th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
12th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
13th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
14th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
15th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
16th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
17th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
18th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
19th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
20th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities

Code immediately below (spoiler).

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[table="width: 1000, class: grid, align: center"]
[tr]
[td][B]Level[/B][/td]
[td][B]Class[/B][/td]
[td][B]Base Attack Bonus[/B][/td]
[td][B]Fort Save[/B][/td]
[td][B]Ref Save[/B][/td]
[td][B]Will Save[/B][/td]
[td][B]Skills[/B][/td]
[td][B]Feats[/B][/td]
[td][B]Class Features[/B][/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]1st[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]2nd[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]3rd[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]4th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]5th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]6th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]7th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]8th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]9th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]10th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]11th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]12th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]13th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]14th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]15th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]16th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]17th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]18th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]19th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]20th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[/table]

For entries with spellcasting, use the following table for Spells per day and Spells Known. (Spells Known only if necessary, i.e. Sorcerer or Bard, but not Wizard or Warmage)

Spoiler

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Spells per Day/Spells Known

Level	0lvl	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th
1st	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
2nd	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
3rd	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
4th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
5th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
6th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
7th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
8th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
9th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
10th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
11th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
12th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
13th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
14th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
15th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
16th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
17th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
18th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
19th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
20th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Code immediately below (spoiler)

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[B]Spells per Day/Spells Known[/B]
[table="width: 500, class: grid, align: center"]
[tr]
[td][B]Level[/B][/td]
[td][B]0lvl[/B][/td]
[td][B]1st[/B][/td]
[td][B]2nd[/B][/td]
[td][B]3rd[/B][/td]
[td][B]4th[/B][/td]
[td][B]5th[/B][/td]
[td][B]6th[/B][/td]
[td][B]7th[/B][/td]
[td][B]8th[/B][/td]
[td][B]9th[/B][/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]1st[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]2nd[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]3rd[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]4th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]5th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]6th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]7th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]8th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]9th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]10th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]11th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]12th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]13th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]14th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]15th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]16th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]17th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]18th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]19th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]20th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[/table]

Please do not post details of your build on the board before it is ready, so as not to spoil the surprise for others.

Sauciers may submit as many builds as they want but please don't use Leadership, as we don't want to overfeed the judges.

Previous challenges;

1. Soulknife
2. Bard
3. Monk
4. Assassin
5. Barbarian
6. Warlock
7. Paladin *
8. Warblade
9. Pyrokineticist
10. Ninja *
11. Druid
12. True Necromancer
13. Dervish
14. Whisperknife
15. Epic Infiltrator *
16. Master of Vipers
17. Ranger *
18. Flayerspawn Psychic
19. Totemist
20. Walker in the Waste
21. Drunken Master
22. Cleric
23. Duskblade
24. Psibond Agent
25. Argent Fist
26. Fighter
27. Artificier
28. Knight
29. Spellthief
30. Factorum _{no cooks submitted}
31. Dragonfire Adept

* Classes marked with an asterisk have had their original posts updated to reflect the final results.

This competition is inspired by the Playground Iron Chef Competitions and uses mostly identical rules.

[Sian]

A few administrative notes:

Competitors will be free to use any official 3.5 rulebook in constructing their builds. Dragon magazine is disallowed, and Unearthed Arcana is allowed; but see Elegance below. Web-exclusive 3.0 or 3.5 materials by WotC are expressly allowed, but take care to verify that an updated version did not appear in print elsewhere, as this may cause an Elegance deduction at the judges' discretion. Alternate rule systems from UA such as gestalt and generic classes are not allowed, as they create a different playing field. Also, item familiars are forbidden because I hate 'em.

Power level is up to you. Cheese is acceptable, but should be kept to a sane level unless you're showcasing a new TO build you've discovered. In the words of one of my predecessors, a little cheddar can be nice, but avoid the mature Gruyere unless you're making a cheese fondue.

Elegance could bear a little elaboration. It basically measures how skillfully you put your build together, and whether you sacrificed flavor for power. We're cooking here - if your dish doesn't taste good, it doesn't matter how well-presented it is. Use of flaws is an automatic loss of one point per flaw in this category. Other things that will cause lost points here are excessive multiclassing, and classes that don't fit the concept - using Cloistered Cleric in a front-line melee fighter, for example, may lose you points. Please note the following: a legal source's relative obscurity should not be considered as penalizing Elegance, excepting the aforementioned issues with Unearthed Arcana. Using too many sources may be an Elegance deduction at the judges' discretion, but a book's relative obscurity may not.

Concerning Experience Requirements: Each build is allotted exactly 200,000 EXP. This is roughly 10,000 EXP more than necessary to get to 20th level. Please take note of this when planning your character for circumstances like LA Buyoff, Item Crafting, Magic Use, Multiclassing EXP Penalties, etc.

Definition of Power for scoring: Since this has been a point of contention, let me lay down this guideline. Since the goal is to emulate the Secret Ingredient, achieving much higher power than the Secret Ingredient is capable of is overkill and should be marked accordingly. Likewise if the build cannot match the power of the Secret Ingredient it should be marked accordingly. Individual judges can decide how much is too much for Power scoring, as each judge will have different tastes. The goal here is to prevent all entries being Wizard 20 because "they do it better."

What's the minimum score in a category? Assuming an entry is legal, the minimum score in any category is 1. If a judge is convinced that an entry is illegal by the RAW, the judge may give a 0 or decline to score a given entry. Because this contest focuses on Player Characters, an entry that is not technically allowed for a PC, but is viable as an NPC, counts as a legal entry, but may receive a minimum score at the judges' discretion.

Is Dragon Compendium Allowed? Yes, but individual issues of Dragon Magazine are not.

What about 3.0 materials? 3.0 materials, whether online or in printed form, are allowed unless they've been officially updated to a 3.5 edition.

Are Dragonlance, Ravenloft, Planescape, Dark Sun, or Kingdoms of Kalamar allowable sources? The Dragonlance Campaign Setting is allowed, but the subsequent books for Dragonlance are considered 3rd party, and are therefore not eligible, despite the "WotC approved" status of those books. The same holds for Oriental Adventures (1st party) and the subsequent Rokugan books (3rd party). Materials from Ravenloft, Planescape, Dark Sun, and Kingdoms of Kalamar are considered 3rd party for purposes of this contest, and are therefore not allowed.

What about online sources in general? If the online source is a) published by WotC, and b) not replaced by an updated version at a later time, it is eligible. Use it, link it.

Where's the line drawn with "acceptable/unacceptable" for Unearthed Arcana? This will likely vary a bit from Chairman to Chairman. Variant class features and variant character classes are espressly permitted. Item Familiars and Gestalt have always been verboten; don't expect that to change. Flaws have similarly always been noted as warranting a deduction; even now that its me that is Chairing, its still extended to Traits, though they warrant 1/2 the penalty in Elegance that a Flaw would because they're roughly 1/2 as useful. Alternate spell systems, alternate skill systems and alternate crafting rules all create an uneven playing field, and as such, will be disallowed for as long as I am Chairman. Bloodlines are ripe for abuse, and will be discouraged as long as I am Chairman. Note that judges are allowed to look askance at any use of Unearthed Arcana not specifically mentioned above, at their discretion, and otherwise penalize Elegance according to their preference.

What, exactly, does the ban on Leadership mean? As folks have started to try to work around the edges of this one, I'm forced to spell it out more plainly. No Leadership, Draconic Cohort, or Feats that grant a similar ability are allowed EXCEPT Wild Cohort while I am chairman. Any PrC you choose with Leadership or a Leadership-analog has that ability entirely ignored for this contest, as it may neither be used nor traded away via any means whatsoever.

How the heck do I even do this? Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to select a combination of race, templates, classes, alternate class features, prestige classes, skills, and feats, meld them into a single character that progresses from ECL 1 to ECL 20, that is as close as possible to the secret ingredient as possible in look, feel, class features. How you do it is up to you, I recommend you read previous competitions if you are interested in seeing how others have done it before you. Capture the essence!

A thread for your amusement/edification: Handy Tips for the Iron Chef in the Playground Noob

[samduke]

battle dancer - interested - I think the link from the DFA might be off..

[Sian]

I'm excused ... its 11:30pm 'round here and i'm just about to head to bed

[ZamielVanWeber]

I can judge again. We just need some dishes.

[dysprosium]

So are those cooking the dancing professionals or the stars?

I will have to see what I can do with this one?

[Sian]

So are those cooking the dancing professionals or the stars?

One of the two, or prehaps the audience.

[dysprosium]

I just realized I have longer to work on this than I thought.

The demon real life and I are battling once again.

One of the two, or prehaps the audience.

Well I am going to consider myself a "star."

And now I'm torn between being partnered with Cheryl Burke or Julianne Hough. Decisions. Decisions.

[ZamielVanWeber]

Our challengers will have about 2 weeks to build a complete build up to Effective Character Level 20 using a 32 point buy and all official WOTC D&D 3.5 materials (excluding Dragon Magazine, but including any WOTC online enhancements) with the abilities and feel of a Dragonfire Adept without actually using any levels in it.

I just noticed this. Whoops!

[Sian]

well, thats embarrassing

[AvatarVecna]

I'm sad: something absolutely perfect popped into my head, and it'll never work because it'll be way too obvious.

[Sian]

Make it anyways ... with the ammount of dishes Zinc have its not to big to turn away obvious builds ... specially since they might not actually be so

[AvatarVecna]

Make it anyways ... with the ammount of dishes Zinc have its not to big to turn away obvious builds ... specially since they might not actually be so

Oh, I intend to make it, but my biggest problem is that I'm always way to nitpicky of my own builds.

[Jurai]

It's time to plant the seeds of an idea.

Chairperson/human/elf/illumian/dragonfire adept/battle dancer, may I please get confirmation of my submission?

[Sian]

27½ Hour to the bell, and 3 submissions have entered (so i'm most likely not extending unless someone come with a specific very short request).

and Jurai, sorry i didn't answer (your post here was missed) but yours is one of 'em

[Jurai]

Awesome. Mine's a bit of a gamble.

[Svata]

Would enter, but there's no time. Will judge, though.

[Chronos]

Huh, I could have entered this one, if I had seen it sooner, but not enough time now. Eh, my idea was probably going to be the same as AvatarVecna's, anyway.

[AvatarVecna]

Huh, I could have entered this one, if I had seen it sooner, but not enough time now. Eh, my idea was probably going to be the same as AvatarVecna's, anyway.

Uh, yeah. My build. That I totally submitted on time. *rushes to google docs*

12 hours to go, and work in the morning...I can do this!

[Sian]

Uh, yeah. My build. That I totally submitted on time. *rushes to google docs*

12 hours to go, and work in the morning...I can do this!

there's still some 15¾ hours to go so not quite as dire

[Sian]

two hours to go... unless someone explicitly asks for a very short (8hours or less) extension to finalize their build

[dysprosium]

I'm not going to be able to get my entry in.

Turns out that I didn't have enough call in votes from the audience to keep me on the floor.

However, since I have been involved with Zinc Saucier in one way or another since Round XII, I will hopefully find the time to judge the entries.

[AvatarVecna]

two hours to go... unless someone explicitly asks for a very short (8hours or less) extension to finalize their build

I am currently getting into the last nitty-gritty details of my build's mechanics, and I've got the story in my head...I just need to write it out. I'd like to say that two hours would be enough to do all that, but I'm at work, so I'm doing the best I can in between the infrequent customers. I estimate roughly 3-4 hours before everything's totally finished and all sources are cited, assuming business continues at this pace; if business goes slower, I should be done on time; if it goes faster than it has been, I estimate I'll be done in about 6-7 hours.

My build is almost complete; I would appreciate a small extension.

[Sian]

extending to 6am UTC then

[Jurai]

Untimed Wario-moon. Apologies.

[AvatarVecna]

GOOD GOD. I love my job, and our customers are nice, but there's just too many frickin' people sometimes, you know? By the Nine...

So yeah, I finally sent in my submission. Thanks for the extension, can't wait to see the reveal...and can't wait to see if my original idea turns out to be as common/obvious as I thought it was.

[Sian]

Time! ... Hold back all traffic as theres a contender train incoming.

[Sian]

I would have had the perfect reference to this entry, but its a reference to a danish childrens song so I fear it would get lost in translation

Spoiler: Story & Snapshots

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There once was a young snow-white feline named Sabrina; Sabrina lived deep in an ancient forest with the fae that watched over the woods. She played with them, and they taught her magic, and life was good. She was never much for hunting, but the fae always protected her, whether from storm, from starvation, or from the more predatory animals that lived in the forest. Every once in a while, strange folks from outside the forest wandered nearby, always obsessing over small bits of metal. Ever since first encountering this poor addicted souls, Sabrina had decided she didn't want any part of that nonsense, and so she kept her distance. Whenever they spotted her, and tried to talk or fight, she'd simply run like the wind, the way she'd been taught by her fairy friends.

The years went by, and Sabrina got bigger, and stronger, and tougher, and faster. Her fairy friends were still faster than she was, but it was never a problem: they all had fun playing games anyway. As Sabrina got older, she grew particularly attached to a young nymph named Nasille; although she'd never admit it, Sabrina had never learned to swim properly, and was terrified of the water, but when she was playing with Nasille, it never even crossed her mind that she was learning to swim. The two of them grew closer over the years, and Sabrina began playing games with Nasille more often than with the other fae...and the games had grown more numerous, and more complicated...but more fun, too. Sometimes, they would race through the woods; sometimes, they hid objects for the other to find; sometimes, they laid down on the island in the middle of Nasille's lake and watched the stars, making up stories for the figures they thought the stars depicted. Much fun was had, and life was happy.

But happiness didn't last: one day, people came, and this time it was more than just a handful; this time, there were many of them, far more at once than Sabrina had seen in her entire life put together. When they got close, they were loud, and had nets, and tried to catch her, but she just ran away from then, thankful for the speed playing with the fairies had given her. But there were too many: everywhere she tried to run, there was always more of them. They went in every direction, and there were too many to run past. As the swept through the forest, Sabrina was eventually captured in their ruthless hunt. She never saw Nasille again.

Sabrina was taken away, far away from the forest. She saw sights she'd never even imagined: places where many people lived, places where they gathered, and places where more humans than even those that took her from the forest gathered, but only so they could go somewhere else. What a strange people, she thought.

At long last, her journey was at an end: she was brought to a massive gathering place, where people from all walks of life were being brought in chains, like she was; scaly people, slimy people, hairy people, even a few other felines, like her. It was explained to them, by scary-looking men with heavy arms and armor, that they were going to fight each other as entertainment for the other people. They would be given no armor, and tiny weapons; the others seemed scared of being so vulnerable, but it was nothing new to Sabrina, so she kept silent; she would cope, somehow.

As days turned into weeks, more and more fights took place, and Sabrina realized just how far out of her depth she was: while she was fast, she didn't really have any combat training beyond the occasional wrestling match with Nasille; there were some here who had that kind of training, and they tore their foes apart. If she was to survive in this place and escape one day, she needed to learn how to fight. And so she threw herself into the combat training, pushing herself to her limits, and hating every moment of it. So much work, just to live because somebody decided people killing each other was funny. Sick, absolutely sick...but necessary, if she was to live. She felt so restrained, so constricted by this, being forced to fight for survival; a life consisting of fun and games had not prepared her well for hardship, and she feared her apathy would be the death of her.

Thanks to her great speed, Sabrina had yet to lose a fight, something only a handful of the original group to boast such success: where once there had been nearly two hundred of them, now only a couple dozen or so remained. Instead of pitting them against one another, they decided to weed out the weaker veterans...by pitting them against wild animals. Many were brought in (bears, boars, badgers for some reason...), but the ones that always entranced her were the tigers and lions: these large felines moved with a grace all their own, and their leaping and jumping and pouncing style caused some primal part of Sabrina to stir in recognition. If she could fight as the tiger fought, she could beat it at its own game, and maybe survive this...

Game. Game! Of course, it's a game! Make it game, make it fun, and she could throw herself into it without feeling bound by the shackles of requirement. She would play this jungle cat's game, she would learn the rules, and she would win against a master at a game she'd never played before.

She could do this.

Spoiler: Lvl 5

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AC: 19
HP: 4d6+1d10+10 (avg. 30 hp)
Saves: Fort +5; Ref +9; Will +3
Full Attack (dual-wielding daggers): +6/+6, 1d4+2, 19-20/x2
Casting as Bard 4

At this point in her gladatorial career, Sabrina is pretty much just coasting on her high Dex for both offense and defense, but that's not going to help her out much without either a lot of luck or a major upgrade. It is recommended that you not start playing Sabrina at this point: surviving the arena without assuming training took place in the background can force your character to depend on XP from combat to level up, and Sabrina is not yet a particularly powerful combatant.

With a mighty thud, the beast fell. Sabrina breathed a sigh of relief; all her training, all her observation, all her effort...it had finally paid off. She had won the game! As her conscious mind returned to reality, she heard the crowd cheering. Dimly, she noted some magically-enhanced voice shouting "Put your hands together for...The Siberian!"

...

Weeks became months became years. Fight after fight, win after win, The Siberian never lost. She never wore armor, she never picked up a weapon, and yet she mopped the floor with one opponent after another. But even as the crowd loved her to pieces, those running the arena were no longer appreciating the business she brought in; the odds of her failure had fallen too low; they needed to make things more uncertain, or their meager gambling profits would dwindle even further.

After coming to the decision to get rid of her somehow, they convinced a prince visiting from afar that her gladiator contract was close to expiring, and that she would need some new source of income. The prince decided to negotiate a new contract with her 'manager', with her as his bodyguard, and The Siberian ended up getting shipped away from the arena back to the prince's homeland. The prince treated her to dinner, informed her of her new position in life, and assured her that she would be treated to the best of luxuries. The next morning, he awoke to find her missing; all that was left was a note that read "your home is beautiful, but a gilded cage is still a cage".

The Siberian laughed as she ran free for the first time in years. Free, free free!

Spoiler: Lvl 10

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AC: 29
HP: 6d6+2d8+2d10+20 (avg. 61 hp)
Saves: Fort +10; Ref +14; Will +7
Full Attack: +15/+15/+10/+10, 1d8+3 and golden ice; 20/x2
Casting as Bard 5
Initiator Level 7

At this point, Sabrina The Siberian is a much more capable, well-rounded gish: the combination of dual-wielding unarmed strikes, maneuvers, and decent buff casting makes The Siberian a nightmare in a straight up fight; throw in high Jump/Tumble skills, and this combat acrobat isn't likely to lose any time soon. Good thing she doesn't have to fight anymore...

The Siberian became a freelance adventurer, righting wrongs and saving lives wherever she went using the skills she'd honed in the arena. Over the years, she continued training both her martial skills and her magical aptitude, attempting to master both as she made her way in the world. As she continued her warpath of heroism, she slowly worked her way back towards her childhood forest home, using her knowledge of the stars to guide her.

Spoiler: Lvl 15 (Sweet Spot)

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AC: 41
HP: 11d6+2d8+2d10+75 (avg. 134 hp)
Saves: Fort +14; Ref +19; Will +12
Full Attack: +23/+23/+18/+18/+13; 6d6+19 and golden ice (+2d6 if SA), 20/x2
Casting as Bard 7, Sublime Chord 3
Initiator Level 11

These stats were calculated assuming that The Siberian is in her Assassin's Stance while "Greater Mighty Wallop" and "Bite of the Weretiger" are active. As you can see, she's a frickin' badass...and that's just what she can do herself; at this point, she can be in a high-level party, and be a wonderful backup melee monster. Don't get me wrong, you get more powerful after this, but as far as the relationship between ECL and total character power, this is the best it gets: you're a powerful gish with good maneuvers, good dual-wielding, and powerful unarmed attacks.

After enough adventuring to last a lifetime, The Siberian Sabrina found her way back to the forest where she'd grown up. Most of the fae were gone, since the forest had been pillaged in a search for anything valuable long ago, but Sabrina didn't mind; she would see this forest restored to its original glory, now that she had the power to defend it from attack. She would rebuild this forest, one tree at a time. It would take time, and effort, and hard work, but Sabrina had long since learned that something worth doing is worth doing right.

She could do this.

Spoiler: Lvl 20

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AC: 46
HP: 16d6+2d8+2d10+100 (avg. 176)
Saves: Fort +19; Ref +24; Will +15
Full Attack: +32/+32/+32/+27/+27/+22/+22/+17, 6d6+23, 20/x2

This is your capstone (I'm assuming Haste, Bite of the Weretiger, and Greater Mighty Wallop are active while you're in your Assassin's Stance). 8th lvl spells, 8th lvl maneuvers, 7 attacks per round, wonderful damage, and good synergy all around. You are ridiculously powerful for a melee monster, and you're still not even really low T2, making The Siberian a decently balanced character for mid-op games taking place beyond about 8th lvl or so.

Spoiler: Build

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Basic Build
Race: Catfolk
Classes: Bard 4/Fighter 2/Unarmed Swordsage 2/Jade Phoenix Mage 10/Sublime Chord 2
Alignment: Chaotic Good
XP Total: 197,000 XP (LA reduction)
Flaws: Inattentive
Stats (before racial adjustment): 12/16/14/12/8/15

ECL	Class	Lvl	BAB	Fort	Ref	Will	Class Features	Skills	Feats	VoP Features	VoP Feats
1	Bard	1	+0	+0	+2	+2	Bardic Music; Bardic Knowledge; Spellcasting	Concentration 4; K (Arcana) 4; K (History) 2; K (Religion) 2; Listen 4; Per (Dance) 4; Pro (Astrologer) 4; Spellcraft 4; Tumble 4	Sacred Vow; Vow of Poverty	AC bonus +4	Nymph's Kiss
2	Bard	2	+1	+0	+3	+3		Concentration 1; Jump 1; K (Arcana) 1; Listen 1; Per (Dance) 1; Pro (Astrologer) 1; Spellcraft 1; Tumble 1			Nimbus of Light
3	Bard	3	+2	+1	+3	+3		Concentration 1; Escape Artist 1; K (Arcana) 1; Listen 1; Per (Dance) 1; Pro (Astrologer) 1; Spellcraft 1; Tumble 1	Weapon Finesse	AC bonus +5; Enduring Elements
4	Bard	4	+3	+1	+4	+4		Concentration 1; Escape Artist 1; K (Arcana) 1; Listen 1; Per (Dance) 1; Pro (Astrologer) 1; Spellcraft 1; Tumble 1		Exalted Strike +1 (magic)	Knight of Stars
5	Fighter	1	+4	+3	+4	+4		K (Arcana) 1; Listen 1	Two-Weapon Fighting	Sustenance
6	Unarmed Swordsage	1	+4	+3	+6	+6	Quick to Act +1; Discipline Focus (WF: Unarmed Strike)	Concentration 1; Jump 1; K (Arcana) 1; Listen 1; Per (Dance) 1; Tumble 1	Ascetic Mage	AC bonus +6; Deflection +1	Touch of Golden Light
7	Unarmed Swordsage	2	+5	+3	+7	+7	AC Bonus	Concentration 1; Jump 1; K (Arcana) 1; Listen 1; Per (Dance) 1; Tumble 1		Resistance +1; Dex +2
8	Fighter	2	+6	+4	+7	+7		K (Arcana) 1; Listen 1	Improved Two-Weapon Fighting	Natural Armor +1; Mind Shielding	Sanctify Martial Strike (Unarmed Strike)
9	Jade Phoenix Mage	1	+7	+6	+7	+7	Arcane Wrath; Rite of Passage	K (Arcana) 1; Listen 1	Superior Unarmed Strike	AC bonus +7
10	Jade Phoenix Mage	2	+8	+7	+7	+7	Mystic Phoenix Stance	K (Arcana) 1; Listen 1		Exalted Strike +2; DR 5/magic	Lliira's Blessing
11	Jade Phoenix Mage	3	+9	+7	+8	+8		Per (Dance) 1; Tumble 2		Dex +4; Cha +2
12	Jade Phoenix Mage	4	+10	+8	+8	+8	Empower Strike	Per (Dance) 1; Tumble 2	Improved Natural Attack (Unarmed Strike)	AC bonus +8; Deflection +2; Greater Sustenance	Gift of Discernment
13	Sublime Chord	1	+10	+8	+8	+10		Per (Dance) 2; Tumble 2		Resistance +2; Energy Resistance 5
14	Sublime Chord	2	+11	+8	+8	+11		Per (Dance) 2; Tumble 2		Exalted Strike +3; Freedom of Movement	Vow of Chastity
15	Jade Phoenix Mage	5	+12	+8	+8	+11		Jump 1; Per (Dance) 1; Tumble 1	Shadow Blade	AC bonus +9; Dex +6; Cha +4; Con +2; DR 5/evil
16	Jade Phoenix Mage	6	+13	+9	+9	+12	Firebird Stance; Jade Phoenix Master	Jump 1; Per (Dance) 1; Tumble 1		Natural Armor +2	Vow of Abstinence
17	Jade Phoenix Mage	7	+14	+9	+9	+12		Jump 1; Per (Dance) 1; Tumble 1		Exalted Strike +4; Resistance +3; Regeneration
18	Jade Phoenix Mage	8	+15	+10	+9	+12	Quickening Strike	Jump 1; Per (Dance) 1; Tumble 1	Greater Two-Weapon Fighting	AC bonus +10; Deflection +3; True Seeing	Stigmata
19	Jade Phoenix Mage	9	+16	+10	+10	+13		Jump 1; Per (Dance) 1; Tumble 1		Dex +8; Cha +6; Con +4; Str +2; DR 10/evil
20	Jade Phoenix Mage	10	+17	+11	+10	+13	Emerald Immolation	Jump 1; Per (Dance) 1; Tumble 1		Exalted Strike +5; Energy Resistance 15	Vow of Obedience

Spells per Day/Spells Known

Level	0lvl	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th
1st	2/4	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
2nd	3/5	0/2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
3rd	3/6	1/3	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
4th	3/6	2/3	0/2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
5th	3/6	2/3	0/2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
6th	3/6	2/3	0/2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
7th	3/6	2/3	0/2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
8th	3/6	2/3	0/2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
9th	3/6	2/3	0/2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
10th	3/6	3/4	1/3	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
11th	3/6	3/4	2/3	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
12th	3/6	3/4	2/4	0/2	-	-	-	-	-	-
13th	3/6	3/4	2/4	0/2	2/3	1/1	-	-	-	-
14th	3/6	3/4	2/4	0/2	2/4	2/2	-	-	-	-
15th	3/6	3/4	2/4	0/2	3/4	2/2	1/1	-	-	-
16th	3/6	3/4	2/4	0/2	3/4	2/2	1/1	-	-	-
17th	3/6	3/4	2/4	0/2	3/4	3/3	2/2	-	-	-
18th	3/6	3/4	2/4	0/2	3/4	3/3	2/2	1/1	-	-
19th	3/6	3/4	2/4	0/2	4/4	3/4	3/3	2/2	-	-
20th	3/6	3/4	2/4	0/2	4/4	4/4	3/3	2/2	1/1	-

Spoiler: Suggested Spells/Maneuvers Known

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Spells

Bard 1 (Bard CL 1)
--Detect Magic (Bard 0)
--Easy Math (Bard 0)
--Ghost Sound (Bard 0)
--Light (Bard 0)

Bard 2 (Bard CL 2)
--Cure Light Wounds (Bard 1)
--Expenditious Retreat (Bard 1)
--Mage Hand (Bard 0)

Bard 3 (Bard CL 3)
--Guided Path (Bard 1)
--Mending (Bard 0)

Bard 4 (Bard CL 4)
--Circle Dance (Bard 2)
--Glitterdust (Bard 2)

Jade Phoenix Mage 2 (Bard CL 5)
--Heroism (Bard 2)
--Serene Visage (Bard 1)

Jade Phoenix Mage 4 (Bard CL 7)
--Grace (Bard 2)
--Haste (Bard 3)
--Weapon of Impact (Bard 3)

Sublime Chord 1 (Bard CL 8; Sublime Chord CL 8
--Cure Critical Wounds (Bard 4)
--Greater Heroism (Sorcerer 5)
--Greater Mighty Wallop (Sorcerer 3)
--Legend Lore (Sorcerer 4)

Sublime Chord 2 (Bard CL 9; Sublime Chord CL 9)
--Overland Flight (Sorcerer 5)
--Polymorph (Sorcerer 4)

Jade Phoenix Mage 5 (Bard CL 10; Sublime Chord CL 10)
--Bite of the Weretiger (Sorcerer 6)

Jade Phoenix Mage 7 (Bard CL 12; Sublime Chord CL 12)
--Greater Dispel Magic (Bard 5)
--Nixie's Grace (Bard 6)

Jade Phoenix Mage 8 (Bard CL 13; Sublime Chord CL 13)
--Emerald Flame Fist (Sorcerer 7)

Jade Phoenix Mage 9 (Bard CL 14; Sublime Chord CL 14)
--Arcane Fusion (Sorcerer 5)
--Summon Aspect of Bahamut (Sorcerer 7)
--Wages of Sin (Sorcerer 6)

Jade Phoenix Mage 10 (Bard CL 15; Sublime Chord CL 15)
--Veil of Undeath (Sorcerer 8)

Maneuvers

Swordsage 1 (IL 3)
--Blood in the Water (Tiger Claw, Stance 1)
--Burning Blade (Desert Wind, Boost 1)
--Counter Charge (Setting Sun, Counter 1)
--Mountain Hammer (Stone Dragon, Strike 2)
--Shadow Blade Technique (Shadow Hand, Strike 1)
--Sudden Leap (Tiger Claw, Boost 1)
--Wolf Fang Charge (Tiger Claw, Strike 1)

Swordsage 2 (IL 4)
--Shadow Jaunt (Shadow Hand, Teleportation 2)
--Stance of Clarity (Diamond Mind, Stance 1)

Jade Phoenix Mage 1 (IL 6)
--Emerald Razor (Diamond Mind, Strike 2)

Jade Phoenix Mage 3 (IL 8)
--Bounding Assault (Diamond Mind, Strike 4)

Jade Phoenix Mage 5 (IL 11)
--Dancing Mongoose (Tiger Claw, Boost 5)
--Assassin's Stance (Shadow Hand, Stance 3)

Jade Phoenix Mage 7 (IL 13)
--Pouncing Charge (Tiger Claw, Strike 5)

Jade Phoenix Mage 9 (IL 15)
--Girallon Windmill Flesh Rip (Tiger Claw, Boost 8)

Spoiler: How is this a Battle Dancer?

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A battle dancer, fluff-wise, is a slave who has broken free of their chains and refuses to be limited. Mechanically, they are a martial artist with full BAB that can essentially dual-wield unarmed strikes, have high unarmed strike damage, get Cha to AC, and are such good tumblers that they can pounce, walk on water, and fly.

The Siberian has nearly full BAB and uses a combination of maneuvers and spells to simulate the various abilities the Battle Dancer has while also adding even more to the pile (such as a significantly higher Fort and Will save, Dex to damage, multiple sources of extra attacks, high-level self-buffing gish abilities, and VoP benefits).

All in all, the Siberian isn't a perfect build (there's things I'd like to have been able to do with it that weren't feasible due to the limited feats available), but I'm happy with it. I'd definitely play this character...as long as it was at least past level 6, when it stops mostly sucking.

[Sian]

Scored a good enough X in the last villaincy test

Al X. Goodenuff




LE Dark Lion Tribe Human Invisible Fist Monk 16 / Antiquarian Rogue 3 / Tattooed Monk 1

Spoiler: Basics

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Name: Al X. Goodenuff
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Race: Human from Lion Tribe (Shining South 164)
Template: Forgotten Realms Dark Creature (Cormyr: The Tearing Of The Weave 152)
Region: The Shaar, Faerûn (Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 197)
Serving: Pandorym (Elder Evils 80)
Organization: Lightbringers (Expedition to Castle Ravenloft 204)

Abilities:

STR 14
DEX 12
CON 13 (+1 @ 20) = 14
INT 12
WIS 13 (+3 @ 8, 12, 16) = 16
CHA 15 (+1 @ 4) = 16

Spoiler: Build

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Level	Class	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Skills	Feats	Class Features
1st	Monk 1	+0	+2	+2	+2	Balance +4, Climb +4, Hide +4, Knowledge (religion) +4, Listen +4, Tumble +4	Improved Unarmed StrikeB, Improved GrappleB, Vile Ki StrikeVB (Elder Evils 14), Lion Tribe WarriorHB (Shining South 20), Endurance	Bonus feat, flurry of blows, unarmed strike
2nd	Monk 2	+1	+3	+3	+3	Balance +1 (5), Climb +1 (5), Hide +1 (5), Knowledge (religion) +1 (5), Listen +1 (5), Tumble +1 (5)	Deflect ArrowsB	Bonus feat, Invisible Fist (Exemplars of Evil 21)
3rd	Rogue 1	+1	+3	+5	+3	Climb +1 (6), Hide +1 (6), Listen +1 (6), Spot +6, Tumble +1 (6)	Ascetic Rogue (Complete Adventurer 106)	Sneak attack +1d6, Antiquarian (Complete Champion 51)
4th	Monk 3	+2	+3	+5	+3	Climb +1 (7), Hide +1 (7), Knowledge (religion) +1 (6), Tumble +1 (7); Twisted Charge (Complete Scoundrel 90)		Still mind
5th	Monk 4	+3	+4	+6	+4	Climb +1 (8), Hide +1 (8), Knowledge (religion) +2 (8), Listen +1 (7), Tumble +1 (8)	Chosen of EvilVB (Elder Evils 12)	Ki strike (magic), Water Step 20' (Stormwrack 50)
6th	Tattooed Monk 1 (Complete Warrior 82)	+3	+6	+8	+6	Climb +1 (9), Hide +1 (9), Knowledge (religion) +1 (9), Move Silently +2, Tumble +1 (9)	Daredevil Athlete (Complete Scoundrel 76)	Monk abilities, Tattoo (Falcon)
7th	Monk 5	+3	+6	+8	+6	Climb +1 (10), Hide +1 (10), Knowledge (religion) +1 (10), Listen +1 (8), Move Silently +1 (3), Tumble +1 (10)		Purity of body
8th	Monk 6	+4	+7	+9	+7	Climb +1 (11), Hide +1 (11), Knowledge (religion) +1 (11), Listen +1 (9), Move Silently +1 (4), Tumble +1 (11)	Improved TripB	Bonus feat, Water Step 30'
9th	Monk 7	+5	+7	+9	+7	Climb +1 (12), Hide +1 (12), Knowledge (religion) +1 (12), Listen +1 (10), Move Silently +1 (5), Tumble +1 (12)	Weapon Focus (unarmed strike)	Wholeness of body
10th	Monk 8	+6	+8	+10	+8	Climb +1 (13), Hide +1 (13), Knowledge (religion) +1 (13), Listen +1 (11), Move Silently +1 (6), Tumble +1 (13)	Slave to EvilVB (Elder Evils 14)	Water Step 40'
11th	Monk 9	+6	+8	+10	+8	Climb +1 (14), Hide +1 (14), Knowledge (religion) +1 (14), Listen +1 (12), Move Silently +1 (7), Tumble +1 (14)		Blink (Exemplars of Evil 21)
12th	Monk 10	+7	+9	+11	+9	Climb +1 (15), Hide +1 (15), Knowledge (religion) +1 (15), Listen +1 (13), Move Silently +1 (8), Tumble +1 (15)	Giantbane (Complete Warrior 111)	Ki strike (lawful), Water Step 50'
13th	Monk 11	+8	+9	+11	+9	Climb +1 (16), Hide +1 (16), Knowledge (religion) +1 (16), Listen +1 (14), Move Silently +1 (9), Tumble +1 (16)		Diamond body, greater flurry
14th	Monk 12	+9	+10	+12	+10	Climb +1 (17), Hide +1 (17), Knowledge (religion) +1 (17), Listen +1 (15), Move Silently +1 (10), Tumble +1 (17)		Abundant step, Water Step 60'
15th	Monk 13	+9	+10	+12	+10	Climb +1 (18), Hide +1 (18), Knowledge (religion) +1 (18), Listen +1 (16), Move Silently +1 (11), Tumble +1 (18)	Vile Natural AttackVB (Elder Evils 14), Sand Dancer (Sandstorm 52)	Diamond soul
16th	Monk 14	+10	+11	+14	+11	Climb +1 (19), Hide +1 (19), Knowledge (religion) +1 (19), Listen +1 (17), Move Silently +1 (12), Tumble +1 (19)		Water Step 70'
17th	Monk 15	+11	+11	+14	+11	Climb +1 (20), Hide +1 (20), Move Silently +1 (13), Tumble +1 (20); Acrobatic Backstab (Complete Scoundrel 84)		Quivering palm
18th	Monk 16	+12	+12	+15	+12	Climb +1 (21), Hide +1 (21), Listen +1 (18), Move Silently +2 (15), Tumble +1 (21)	Pebble Underfoot (Dragon Compendium 103)	Ki strike (adamantine), Water Step 80'
19th	Rogue 2	+13	+12	+16	+12	Climb +1 (22), Hide +1 (22), Move Silently +1 (16), Spot +6 (12), Tumble +1 (22)		Evasion
20th	Rogue 3	+14	+13	+17	+13	Climb +1 (23), Hide +1 (23), Move Silently +1 (17), Spot +6 (18), Tumble +1 (23)	Vile Martial StrikeVB (Elder Evils 14)	Sneak attack +2d6, Lightbringer Rogue Penetrating Strike (Expedition to Castle Ravenloft 208)

Spoiler: Story

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Growing up in The Shaar, Al X. Goodenuff was a very disciplined child. He trained as a capoeira dancer, mixing Tumble skill and martial arts moves into a visually pleasing whole. For a time this was a lucrative performance art. Then his brother was seduced by a charismatic thief, and both were killed on their criminal caper by a Knight/Justiciar named Brutes Wills. Al embraced his Dark side and vowed to dance on the grave of Brutes Wills.

Spoiler: Notes

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The +1 level adjustment from Dark template is bought off for 3,000 XP at class level 3, leaving 7,000 XP beyond the level 20 minimum.

Al X. Goodenuff has very simple needs. He doesn't require any armor, weapons, spellbooks, spell components, other creatures (mounts, familiars, companions), or any magic items. All he needs is 200 gp to pay his Lightbringer initiation and dues (Expedition to Castle Ravenloft 204) and a single body alteration at level 17, costing 10,000 gp: Feathered Wings graft (Fiend Folio 210). Al's alignment is compatible with this graft.

A graft is not a magic item. It does not radiate magic once completed (although a graft might require the casting of specific spells as part of the construction process), and it does not take up a body slot like a magic item would. A graft cannot be suppressed with dispel magic, nor is it affected by an antimagic field or similar effects.

There are a couple things in the "would be nice" category for Al:

• Monk's Belt to offset Rogue levels for a closer match to the Battle Dancer AC Bonus feature
• Sparring Dummy of the Master (Arms and Equipment Guide 137) for 1 month of training, after which he could take 10' steps as well as 5' steps

Al has the Battle Dancer class features covered pretty well (see below for comparisons). He's also got a ton of abilities beyond the Battle Dancer list. Monk has many class features, most of which don't work together very well, but the large number of these abilities mean there's a respectable chance that some of them may be useful. (Who knows? Quivering Palm might actually function as the powerful insta-death attack it's supposed to be. ) Rogue (with ACFs) adds some more capabilities, such as Evasion and being able to identify magic items with a Knowledge (religion) check (leveraging a Tattooed Monk entry requirement).

Serving an Elder Evil grants [Vile] bonus feats (Elder Evils 10). With his [Vile] feats Al gets to be virtually immune to divine spells, and add +3 points of Vile damage to every unarmed strike (+1 each in the categories of unarmed strike, natural weapon strike, and martial weapon strike; as a Monk, his unarmed strike is all of those). This damage is a good counter to enemies with Fast Healing or Regeneration.

... vile damage does not heal naturally, and even healing magic is effective only within the area of a consecrate or hallow spell.

To be fair, there's nothing that would prevent a Battle Dancer of appropriate alignment also serving an Elder Evil; these [Vile] bonus feats aren't a power boost over the Secret Ingredient any more than bonus [Exalted] feats would be for a very Good-aligned character with Vow of Poverty. Rather, the feats are present as simply part of the overall character build. The same goes for the Dark Creature template: a Battle Dancer from Faerûn could have that, too. The template adds some stealth and speed boosts that are nice, but still most of Al's stealth and speed come from skill ranks and Monk Fast Movement. Service and template choices are integral elements of a fully-realized character.

The skills could use some explanation. Tumble is required for Battle Dancer abilities, but most of the emulations don't require Tumble skill. (Sand Dancer and Giantbane feats and the two skill tricks are exceptions.) Still, Tumble is a very useful skill, and one which Al maximizes for that very reason (which also means satisfying all the Battle Dancer skill rank requirements at every level, for what it's worth). Perception is key to avoiding surprise, and the build has respectable ranks (plus good Wisdom bonus) in both Listen (a Battle Dancer class skill) and Spot (not a BD class skill). The numbers match for these two skills, which puts Spot ranks a bit past the BD cross-class limit. (That could merit a tiny boost to Power and a tiny ding to Elegance if a judge wanted to be persnickety about the emulation.) The stealth skills are also high, as Al needs to qualify for sneak attack to deliver +2d6 damage duplicating BD Dance of Death's Embrace. The build includes many ways to qualify for sneak attack so as to make for a more thorough emulation. All these skills should come as no surprise, as should the 5 ranks in Balance (both to avoid being caught flat-footed, and as a requirement for Twisted Charge trick). The two that are out of the ordinary are Knowledge (religion) and Climb. Al has enough ranks in Knowledge (religion) to always identify (equivalent of Identify spell) divine magic items through CL 20 with his Antiquarian Rogue ACF. The Climb ranks have general utility, but are maximized specifically to use the Climb Aboard maneuver of the Giantbane feat. This lets Al enter an enemy's space (emulating Dance of the Crushing Python) where he uses Climb checks to oppose the enemy's grapple checks.

This build includes a 1-level dip into Tattooed Monk, where Al acquires his Falcon tattoo to emulate BD Dance of Reckless Bravery. If taking just 1 level of this PrC offends your judging sensibilities, consider instead an Adaptation: add 2 more levels of Tattooed Monk (total of 3 levels) in place of 2 Monk levels (total of 14 levels). This would add one more tattoo, Monkey, for a +2 competence bonus to Tumble (and other skills), improving Al's emulation of BD Dance of the Vexing Snake; it would also worsen Al's emulation of BD Dancer's Strike by dropping Ki Strike (adamantine). Due to Tattooed Monk class feature Monk Abilities, unarmed damage, AC Bonus, and Fast Movement remain unchanged. Skill points, class skills, BAB, all saves, and hit die at each level would also be unchanged.

Spoiler: Comparisons

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Spoiler: Full Attack

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Levels	Battle Dancer	Al X. Goodenuff*
1st	+1	-2/-2
2nd	+2	-1/-1
3rd	+3	-1/-1
4th	+4	-0/-0
5th	+5	+1/+1
6th	+6/+1	+1/+1
7th	+7/+2	+2/+2
8th	+8/+3	+3/+3
9th	+9/+4	+4/+4
10th	+10/+5	+5/+5/+0
11th	+11/+6/+1	+6/+6/+1
12th	+12/+7/+2	+7/+7/+2
13th	+13/+8/+3	+8/+8/+8/+3
14th	+14/+9/+4	+9/+9/+9/+4
15th	+15/+10/+5	+9/+9/+9/+4
16th	+16/+11/+6/+1	+10/+10/+10/+5
17th	+17/+12/+7/+2	+11/+11/+11/+6/+1
18th	+18/+13/+8/+3	+12/+12/+12/+7/+2
19th	+19/+14/+9/+4	+13/+13/+13/+8/+3
20th	+20/+15/+10/+5	+14/+14/+14/+9/+4

^* - Does not include +1 bonus from Weapon Focus (unarmed strike) or +2 from being unseen.

Spoiler: Class Skills

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Battle Dancer	Al X. Goodenuff
Balance, Climb, Escape Artist, Hide, Jump, Listen, Move Silently, Open Lock, Perform, Sleight of Hand, Swim, Tumble	Appraise, Balance, Bluff, Climb, Concentration, Craft, Decipher Script, Diplomacy, Disable Device, Disguise, Escape Artist, Forgery, Gather Information, Hide, Intimidate, Jump, Knowledge (arcana), Knowledge (local), Knowledge (religion), Listen, Move Silently, Open Lock, Perform, Profession, Search, Sense Motive, Sleight of Hand, Spot, Swim, Tumble, Use Magic Device, Use Rope

Spoiler: Level 20

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Build	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Hit Points	Skill Points
Battle Dancer	+6	+12	+6	d8 x20 (average of 133.5 HP)	(5 + INT mod) x23 = 138
Al X. Goodenuff	+13	+17	+13	d8 x17 + d6 x3 (average of 130.5 HP)	(5 + INT mod) x20 + (9 + INT mod) x3 = 150

Spoiler: Class Features

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Battle Dancer Feature (@ level)	Emulation (@ level)
Proficient with all simple weapons @1	Monk weapons @1; all simple weapons + Rogue weapons @3
AC Bonus (CHA-based) @1	AC Bonus (WIS-based) @1; can (optionally) add Monk's Belt to offset Rogue levels for better emulation
Unarmed Strike @1	Unarmed Strike @1 (an exact match in unarmed damage through every level of the build thanks to Ascetic Rogue feat)
Dance of Reckless Bravery @2: move action to activate; lasts 5 + CHA mod rounds; +4 morale boost to saves vs. fear for allies within 30'	Tattooed Monk Falcon Tattoo @6: always active; +4 morale boost to saves vs. fear for allies within 10'; also personally immune to fear
Bonus Speed: +10' @4; +20' @10; +30' @16	Fast Movement: +10' @4; +20' @8; +30' @11; +40' @14; +50' @18
Dance of the Vexing Snake @5: Tumble at normal speed (60') without -10 penalty	Daredevil Athlete @6: +5 bonus to Tumble (or other skill) as immediate action 3/day; also ½ speed is 45'
Dancer's Strike: magic @6; alignment @12; material/alignment @18	Ki Strike (magic) @5; (lawful) @12; (adamantine) @18
Dance of the Floating Step (normally 40' @8; 50' @10; 60' @16)	Water Step ACF (20' @5; 30' @8; 40' @10; 50' @12; 60' @14; 70' @16; 80' @18)
Dance of the Springing Tiger @11: Pounce	Lion Tribe Warrior feat @1: Pounce with single light weapon (including unarmed strike); Twisted Charge skill trick @4: make a turn during charge movement
Dance of the Crushing Python @14: fight in opponent's space	Giantbane feat Climb Aboard maneuver @12: fight in space of opponent 2+ sizes larger
Dance of the Soaring Eagle @17: fly @ land speed/average	Buy Feathered Wings graft (Fiend Folio 210) @17: fly @ 2x land speed/average [Note: a graft is not a magic item.]
Dance of Death's Embrace @20: activate with full-round action and DC 35 Tumble check; deal +2d6 damage to single target, and auto-confirm critical threats	Sneak attack +2d6 @20: enable sneak attack with any of (1) Invisible Fist (become invisible for 1 round every 3 rounds); (2) Acrobatic Backstab skill trick; (3) Dark Creature Hide in Plain Sight; (4) flanking with ally (Lightbringer Penetrating Strike makes sneak attack still work vs. sneak-immune foes); (5) Giantbane Death from Below maneuver; (6) Sand Dancer feat

[Sian]

I'd make a comment on the stereotypical response of Paladin on wild beauty, but I'll hold my tongue.

Spoiler: Nympho-monk-ia

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Aquila Frostheart, Lawful Good Female Nymph Monk 2/Sacred Fist 5 (6d6+7d8+26 (87 HP))

Spoiler: Assumptions and Skills (Because Wizards thinks Divine Caster/Monk Theurges need a crappy skill list AND crappy class features)

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The SRD states that Nymph's Level Adjustment is +7, so this build only shows off 13 levels. Assuming modifiers of +0 Strength, +6 Dexterity, +2 Constitution, +6 Intelligence, +4 Wisdom, and +4 Charisma. Only listing important skills.

Before modifiers: Strength 10, Dexterity 10, Constitution 12, Intelligence 12, Wisdom 12, Charisma 18
After modifiers: Strength 10, Dexterity 16, Constitution 14, Intelligence 18, Wisdom 16, Charisma 22
After Increases and Vow of Poverty: Strength 10, Dexterity 16, Constitution 14, Intelligence 18, Wisdom 18, Charisma 29
Ability Score Increases at 4, 8, and 12 go to Charisma

Level	Class	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Skills	Feats and Ability Score Increases	Class Features
1st	Fey 1	+0	+6	+8	+8	4 ranks of Concentration (+6) and Tumble (+7); 2 ranks each of Knowledge (Religion) (+6). The rest are open.	Combat Casting	Blinding Beauty (DC 10 + Charisma modifier + ½ Hit Dice), Spells, Spell-like Abilities, Stunning Glance (DC 10 + Charisma modifier + ½ Hit Dice), Damage Reduction 10/Cold Iron, Low-light Vision, Unearthly Grace, Wild Empathy (+16), AC Bonus +4
2nd	Fey 2	+1	+6	+9	+9	5 ranks of Concentration (+7) and Tumble (+8); 2.5 ranks each of Knowledge (Religion) (+6). The rest are open.	--	--
3rd	Fey 3	+1	+7	+9	+9	6 ranks of Concentration (+8) and Tumble (+9); 3 ranks each of Knowledge (Religion) (+7). The rest are open.	Sacred Vow	AC Bonus +5, Endure Elements
4th	Fey 4	+2	+7	+10	+10	7 ranks of Concentration (+9) and Tumble (+10); 3.5 ranks each of Knowledge (Religion) (+7). The rest are open.	Charisma +1	Exalted Strike +1 (Magic)
5th	Fey 5	+2	+7	+10	+10	8 ranks of Concentration (+10) and Tumble (+11); 4 ranks of Knowledge (Religion) (+8). The rest are open.	--	Sustenance
6th	Fey 6	+3	+8	+11	+11	9 ranks of Concentration (+11) and Tumble (+12); 4.5 ranks of Knowledge (Religion) (+8). The rest are open.	Intuitive Attack, Vow of Poverty	AC Bonus +6, Deflection Bonus +1
7th	Monk 1	+3	+12	+15	+15	10 ranks of Concentration (+12) and Tumble (+13); 8 ranks of Knowledge (Religion) (+12). The rest are open.	Improved Unarmed Strike, Stunning Fist	Flurry of Blows, Unarmed Strike, AC Bonus, Resistance +1, Charisma +2
8th	Monk 2	+4	+14	+17	+17	11 ranks of Concentration (+13), Tumble (+14) and Knowledge (Religion) (+15). The rest are open.	Animal Friend, Charisma +1, Combat Reflexes	Evasion, Mind Shielding, Natural Armor +1
9th	Sacred Fist 1	+5	+16	+19	+17	12 ranks of Concentration (+14), Tumble (+15), and Knowledge Religion (+16). The rest are open.	Superior Unarmed Strike	AC Bonus +7, Unarmed Damage
10th	Sacred Fist 2	+6	+18	+20	+17	13 ranks of Concentration (+15), Tumble (+16), and Knowledge Religion (+17). The rest are open.	Sanctify Natural Attack	Exalted Strike +2 (Good), DR 5/Magic
11th	Sacred Fist 3	+7	+19	+21	+19	14 ranks of Concentration (+16), Tumble (+17), and Knowledge Religion (+18). The rest are open.	--	Charisma +4, Wisdom +2, Fast Movement +10 Ft.
12th	Sacred Fist 4	+8	+20	+22	+19	15 ranks of Concentration (+17), Tumble (+18), and Knowledge Religion (+19). The rest are open.	Charisma +1, Snap Kick, Touch of Golden Ice	AC Bonus +8, Deflection +2, Greater Sustenance, Sacred Flames 1/day
13th	Sacred Fist 5	+9	+21	+23	+19	16 ranks of Concentration (+18), Tumble (+19), and Knowledge Religion (+20). The rest are open.	--	Resistance +2, Resist Acid, Cold, Electric, Fire, and Sonic 5

Spoiler: AC

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10 + Exalted (8) + Monk’s Wisdom (4) + Nymph’s Unearthly Grace (9) + Natural Armor (1) + Dexterity (3) + Sacred (2) = AC 37, Touch 28, Flat-footed 34, Flat-footed Touch 25

Spoiler: Emulation

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Ingredient	Dish
Base Attack Bonus	Flurry of Blows allows for three attacks as a full round action, and then Snap Kick offers a third, only asking that multiple weapons be used for a melee attack, thus netting four attacks as a full round action at a -4 penalty to all attacks, which Exalted Strike +2 and Intuitive Attack partially Mitigate.
Fortitude Save	With a base Fortitude modifier of 9, I exceed the base Fortitude Save modifier of a twentieth level Battle Dancer, and Unearthly Grace adds an exceptional +9 to all saves.
Reflex Saves	With a base Reflex modifier of 12, I meet the base Reflex Save modifier of a twentieth level Battle Dancer, and Unearthly Grace adds an exceptional +9 to all saves.
Will Saves	With a base Will modifier of 9, I exceed the base Will Save modifier of a twentieth level Battle Dancer, and Unearthly Grace adds an exceptional +9 to all saves.
AC Bonus	Nymph’s Unearthly Grace
Unarmed Strike	Monk’s Unarmed Strike, Superior Unarmed Strike, Sacred Fist’s Unarmed Damage
Dance of Reckless Bravery	Met by Druid Spells given by Nymph and advanced by Sacred Fist.
Bonus Speed	Met by Druid Spells given by Nymph and advanced by Sacred Fist.
Dance of the Vexing Snake	Met by Druid Spells given by Nymph and advanced by Sacred Fist.
Dancer’s Strike	Vow of Poverty’s Exalted Strike meets the Magic and Good qualities, but not material. However, these work constantly, as well as the Align Fang spell.
Dance of the Floating Step	Met by Druid Spells given by Nymph and advanced by Sacred Fist.
Dance of the Springing Tiger	The 3rd level Druid Spell Lion’s Charge.
Dance of the Crushing Python	Nymph’s Blinding Beauty, which applies Stunned condition.
Dance of the Soaring Eagle	The 3rd level Druid spell Fire Wings.
Dance of Death’s Embrace	Missed, although a feat could be swapped out for a Banemagic feat.

Spoiler: Story and sweet spots

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Aquila’s parents were a satyr and a nymph, two lovers that frequented a monastery of Ilmater to play music for them and to join them during services. It was, in fact, during one of those services, that Aquila’s mother went into to labor. She gave birth to a little girl, but died. Her father was distraught, and ran, abandoning the young nymph to the monastery. An abbess of the monastery raised the young nymph, and she showed great talent for spellcasting and fighting.

Spoiler: Levels 1 through 6

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Here you’re just a Nymph with fists and Druid spells and the ability to stun with a glance. The build actually sets itself up next level, though the fourth level spells you have as a Nymph are amazing at this point, since fourth level spells on a sixth level character is several kinds of bonkers. Combat Casting, Sacred Vow, and Vow of Poverty strike here, for reasons of simplicity of build, Intuitive Attack comes online as well, adding Wisdom to Attack rolls in place of Strength.

Eventually, Aquila finally took the first step to enlightenment, mastering her body and mind. She took to the lessons quickly, but was pulled aside by the Abbess one day, and put into advanced training. Here she was taught to manipulate her magic to improve herself.

Spoiler: Levels 7 through 11, sweet spot.

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Here, Aquila picks up both levels of Monk, adding Wisdom to AC, Improved Unarmed Strike, Stunning Fist, and Combat Reflexes. She’s got fifth level spells now, so that’s a lot of neat tricks. Sanctify Natural Attack modifies her fists because they are treated as both natural weapons and manufactured weapons for the purpose of effects that enhance those weapons. She punches like a ninth level Battle Dancer, but has the ability to penetrate damage reduction X/Good and X/Magic. Her fists are treated as +2 weapons at this point as well. She has evasion, and with her ridiculous save modifiers after everything she adds, she’s highly unlikely to fail Reflex saves. Then you toss in such nice things as Stunning Fist or her Stunning Glance to set up Flurry next turn, to make up for the penalty, since she doesn’t get improvements on her Flurry. Her once per day dimension door also covers for Abundant Step, though it’s not as high a caster level.

Her monastery was attacked by demons while she was on a pilgrimage to another temple of Ilmater, and she returned to see the demons lounging. She was furious, and charged them, fighting the entire horde to a standstill, using her skills and powers to the best of her ability, defeating them. After she put the bodies to rest, she left, to become more powerful and to establish her own temple.

Spoiler: Levels 12-13

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Accursed Level Adjustment. Seri-effing-ously. She picks up two levels of Sacred Fist. This gives her sixth level spells, a Fast Movement, gains the ability to add eight damage that is half fire and half divine, like Flamestrike, to her fists, the ability to afflict her foes with Golden Ice, as well as Snap Kick adding a fourth attack to her Flurry routine or a third to her standard full attack.